The past couple of weeks have been filled with exciting new projects and surprises, although one surprise was rather unpleasant. It involved our Churro bear having surgery. I'm glad to report that he is doing very well, so well that he's been outside chasing bees (bees!). One thing is for sure, summer already seems like it's passing by too quickly. Time to grab hold before it's all gone! I think one of the best ways to do that is to crystallize rose petals, because you can find the most vivid and fragrant organic rose petals during summer months.

I'd like to say there's nothing fancy going on with this tart, but who am I kidding? Candied rose petals and edible gold leaf is pretty fancy. But there's simplicity too. Strawberry jam is layered onto buttery tart crust and then everything is covered in rose-scented white chocolate ganache. Going the extra mile with petals and gold leaf just makes it even more dreamy.

Recently, my friends at Betty Crocker asked if I'd like to create a minion cake to celebrate the newly released movie Despicable Me 2. I was over the moon! I'm a huge fan of the first movie and couldn't wait to get started. Working out all the details turned out to be so much fun! I think you'll find this baking project easy and approachable. Just get yourself a 9x13 sheet cake, some frosting, a mint patty for an eye and chocolate drops for buttons! You can find the recipe at this link, and how-to instructions with step-by-step pictures can be found at this link.

I've decorated a great many cakes and sweets with lovely macarons, but I've always had the secret wish to adorn myself with them, too. That's why I was so excited when Tiny Hands Jewelry (a cute food jewelry site) sent me a beautiful little macaron necklace. It's raspberry-scented too! I love it so much I decided to re-create a life-size, edible version.

While I was out shopping for fresh raspberries, I saw some gorgeous golden raspberries and decided to make a batch of macarons in my favorite Pantone hue. I've always had an affinity for baking with color, and I knew that turquoise and yellow would be so striking together! I really love how both versions turned out - and despite their different appearances, they taste almost exactly the same.

I got a real kick out making these mac lookalikes! I was actually giggling to myself while I photographed the two together.

In addition to the giveaway, Tiny Hands is offering a 20% discount to SprinkleBakes readers. Just enter sprinkle20 at checkout. Offer expires June 30th.

If you ask me, there's a good bit of subject matter that Dale Carnegie neglected to cover in his book "How to Win Friends & Influence People". I think a chapter on doughnuts would have been appropriate. Years ago when I worked in an office environment I would sometimes bring doughnuts to my co-workers, and those who had squabbled just one day earlier conceded to speak a few polite words over a box of glazed and jelly-filled. Segregated groups came together. White coats and secretaries stood around exchanging pleasantries "Isn't it nice out today? These are my favorite!"

Such is the magic of doughnuts. Believe it!

I've had the idea for these doughnuts ever since my visit to New York last year. My agent Lindsay took me to The Breslin for breakfast, and they served up a crazy good peanut butter bourbon sandwich. It looked a little like a doughnut to me, and it tasted even better than it looked! I made a mental note - try this at home.

My pastry is definitely different than what I sampled at the Breslin, but it has the flavor I wanted to capture with a peanut butter-bourbon filling.